Key Points
- Major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance purchased 24,030 W.R. Berkley shares on Feb. 11 at $70.59 each ($1,696,277.70), bringing its stake to about 56.56 million shares after three recent buys totaling roughly 97,996 shares (~$6.83M).
- WRB opened at $71.55, trades in a 12‑month range of $59.55–$78.96, and has a market capitalization of $27.19 billion with a P/E of 16.08.
- The company slightly missed quarterly EPS ($1.13 vs. $1.14 estimate), pays a $0.09 quarterly dividend (0.5% yield), and carries a consensus analyst rating of Hold with a $69.67 price target and expected FY EPS of 4.33.
W.R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance Co Mitsui acquired 24,030 shares of W.R. Berkley stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, February 11th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $70.59 per share, with a total value of $1,696,277.70. Following the transaction, the insider owned 56,556,652 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,992,334,064.68. The trade was a 0.04% increase in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Major shareholders that own more than 10% of a company's stock are required to disclose their sales and purchases with the SEC.
W.R. Berkley Stock Performance
WRB stock opened at $71.55 on Thursday. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $69.05 and a two-hundred day moving average of $72.11. W.R. Berkley Corporation has a 12 month low of $59.55 and a 12 month high of $78.96. The company has a market capitalization of $27.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 16.08, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.37. The company has a quick ratio of 0.37, a current ratio of 0.37 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.29.
W.R. Berkley (NYSE:WRB - Get Free Report) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Monday, January 26th. The insurance provider reported $1.13 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.14 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $3.18 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.18 billion. W.R. Berkley had a return on equity of 18.35% and a net margin of 12.10%.W.R. Berkley's quarterly revenue was up 2.1% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $1.13 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that W.R. Berkley Corporation will post 4.33 EPS for the current fiscal year.
W.R. Berkley Dividend Announcement
The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, December 29th. Shareholders of record on Monday, December 15th were given a dividend of $0.09 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Monday, December 15th. This represents a $0.36 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 0.5%. W.R. Berkley's dividend payout ratio is presently 8.09%.
Institutional Inflows and Outflows
Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in WRB. Entrust Financial LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley in the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Compass Financial Services Inc bought a new position in W.R. Berkley during the third quarter valued at about $26,000. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. raised its holdings in W.R. Berkley by 140.0% in the 4th quarter. Hazlett Burt & Watson Inc. now owns 360 shares of the insurance provider's stock valued at $26,000 after acquiring an additional 210 shares in the last quarter. Twin Peaks Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Finally, Elevation Point Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new stake in shares of W.R. Berkley during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. Institutional investors own 68.82% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth
A number of analysts have recently weighed in on WRB shares. Mizuho reduced their price objective on shares of W.R. Berkley from $69.00 to $67.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, January 27th. Keefe, Bruyette & Woods lifted their target price on shares of W.R. Berkley from $73.00 to $76.00 and gave the stock a "market perform" rating in a report on Tuesday, January 6th. Morgan Stanley set a $73.00 price target on shares of W.R. Berkley in a report on Wednesday, January 28th. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on W.R. Berkley from $68.00 to $66.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Finally, Truist Financial set a $80.00 price objective on W.R. Berkley and gave the stock a "buy" rating in a research report on Tuesday, January 27th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, nine have assigned a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $69.67.
Read Our Latest Research Report on W.R. Berkley
More W.R. Berkley News
Here are the key news stories impacting W.R. Berkley this week:
- Positive Sentiment: Major shareholder Sumitomo Insurance increased its stake with three purchases (Feb. 9, 10 and 11) totaling about 97,996 shares (~$6.83M at the reported prices), nudging its ownership above 56.5M shares. Insider buying at these levels is a strong bullish signal for sentiment and supports the recent price rise. SEC Filing
- Neutral Sentiment: Management presented at the Bank of America Financial Services Conference; the transcript provides detail on strategy, underwriting, and reserve positioning that investors can use to judge forward outlook. Review the transcript for management commentary. Bank of America Conference Transcript
- Neutral Sentiment: Management also presented at UBS’s Financial Services Conference; that transcript offers additional color on capital deployment and loss-cost trends — useful but not market-moving by itself. UBS Conference Transcript
- Neutral Sentiment: UBS maintained a Hold rating on WRB, which suggests analysts are not yet ready to turn bullish despite insider buying — this may limit near-term analyst-driven upside. Article
- Neutral Sentiment: Recent media pieces are re‑examining WRB’s valuation after a strong multi‑year run, prompting debate about upside vs. current multiples and expected earnings growth — these discussions can increase volatility as investors reassess valuation. Is It Time To Reassess Valuation Look
W.R. Berkley Company Profile
(
Get Free Report)
W. R. Berkley Corporation (NYSE: WRB) is a publicly traded insurance holding company that underwrites and sells commercial property and casualty insurance, specialty insurance products, and reinsurance. Headquartered in Greenwich, Connecticut, the company operates a portfolio of underwriting businesses that focus on niche and specialty commercial risks, offering coverage tailored to industries such as transportation, construction, professional services and other commercial lines.
The company's product mix includes primary and excess casualty, property, professional liability, environmental and other specialty lines, together with treaty and facultative reinsurance solutions.
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